I tried so hard, and got so far, but in the end, it doesn't even matter, I had to fall, to lose it all, but in the end it doesn't even matter…in The End, it doesn't even matter.

-Linkin Park, In the End

Mang placed the artifact back on its rightful pedestal and sighed as she felt it's power return and what that power meant. It was only a matter of time now, she knew he would come, killing Merton made that a fact. She knew he would be foolish enough to come after her, and she would feed once again.

His eagerness to find a cure and to do anything to that end was why he was where he was. She had meet others like them, most were the same. Easily deceived, and in the end dead.

-----

"Tommy!" Lori screamed as she ran after him out of the castle, he was far enough away that a normal person would have been out of ear shot, but he stopped, and waited till she caught up.

"What?" he said a little more harshly than he meant.

"You can't just run off and get her, you need a plan or she's going to use you for that life force sucking thing," she said. She was almost hysterical, her eyes were still red, and tears were still falling down her face.

"I've gotta do something," he said.

"And your going to leave the body of your friend in our castle?" a voice said. Both Tommy and Lori spun around to fight, seeing the Syndicate leader.

"I'm not here to hurt you, I'm actually here to help. We'll get your frie…Merton's body where it needs to be," he said, the name rolling off his tongue as if it was something distasteful.

"Why?" Tommy asked, not letting his guard down.

"I want Mang dead, and we need the artifact back. I can give you information to make sure it's done, but I need your assurance that you will kill her." He explained.

"She's as good as dead," Lori said, making Tommy stare at her.

"That bitch needs to get what's coming to her," she replied to his look.

-------

Mang polished the artifact. She had changed into her black robes and cloak, she always wore them on occasions like this. She had used them the first time she had sucked the life out of female werewolf. She had never expected what was coming, she had thought Mang was her best friend. She was a horrible judge of character. She looked at the base of the artifact, inscribed along it was the last name of everyone she had killed with its use. She was tracing her finger over the name of her last victim when she felt something violently grab her and throw her across the room into the wall.

She slowly looked up from where she was crumpled on the floor to see Tommy standing above her.

"I knew you would come," she said as she sat herself up against the wall and stared at him.

"The you should have been better prepared," he said as he came at her, but she was faster and she lashed out with a kick to his stomach, he doubled over and fell backwards. She jumped over him, but he grabbed her ankle. She fell at the foot of the pedestal. Her head made a large crack noise as she hit it on the ground, she turned over to have her arms pinned down as Tommy hovered over her.

"Time to die," he told her as he snarled.

"Your correct," she smiled as her eyes suddenly turned black. Tommy jerked backwards away from her as he felt a sharp pain in his chest and head. Mang smiled as she stood up, sighing as she felt his life force drain into her.

Tommy looked up to see the artifact glowing a strange black, the same shade as Mang's eyes. It was like she was getting younger and stronger in front of his eyes. She looked at him and smiled.

"I suspect your life force will keep me alive for at least 40 years," she told him as she rolled her head to the side.

"I wouldn't be so sure," he smirked through the pain. She looked at him and started laughing, and suddenly she stopped as Tommy heard the sickening sound of a knife being shoved into flesh. Mang's eyes returned to normal as the knife came out, and the artifacts glow faded as well. Tommy felt the pain melt away as well, but he knew that it was mostly likely too late for that.

Mang fell to her knees and bent her head up to see her killer. She couldn't believe it, she had fallen for this trick. It was Lori. Mangs eyes rolled back in her head, and she fell forward, unmoving. Lori dropped the knife and ran to Tommy, falling to her knees as she got there. He had dropped his head back to the ground.

"You knew this would happen," she said as fresh tears ran down her face.

"She had to pay, and she had to be distracted, the only time she's vulnerable is when she's taking someone's life force, and I think…if we get back soon…." He coughed painfully. "I'll be alright."

"You had better, I can't lose you too," she smiled before she bent down and gave him a light kiss on the lips. She sat back up and smiled at him.

"Lori..." was all he got out, and he once again heard the sick sound of a knife in someone's back. Lori blinked in shock, as she looked back at Tommy. There was blood coming from her mouth.

"No…" Tommy sobbed out before she fell forward on him. Mang was on her hands and knees behind her, desperately trying to stay up, but she fell again. Tommy stared at her and she smiled back.

"You didn't think I'd go before I destroyed my own killer did you?" she asked in a small and weak voice before her face went blank and her head rolled to the side and he saw the all to familiar life drain from her eyes.

Tommy pulled the knife out of Lori's back, and rolled her over so that he was holding her. He knew he wasn't going to make it. He couldn't never get back on his own, and he could feel himself slipping away, and he had no one to blame but himself. His two best friends in the whole world were dead. He had no one to blame but himself. They would never get to see how their lives would turn out. He had no one to blame but himself. He was going to die, this was how it was ending. Despite all his efforts, everything he had done, this was the end. He had no one to blame but himself. He looked at the artifact, it was glowing black as four names were inscribed in black fire on the base. Dingle, Baxter, Mang, and Dawkins.

"So this is the end," he muttered before he was engulfed in the darkness.

I tried so hard, and got so far, but in the end, it doesn't even matter, I had to fall, to lose it all, but in the end it doesn't even matter…in The End, it doesn't even matter.

-Linkin Park, In the End